Join me and Innisfil, Ontario Mayor Lynn Dollin on Episode 38 of the Thriving Mayor Show as we chat about: - Lynn's quarter century plus of elected dedication - Leading and mentoring future politicians and leaders - Pioneering and leading climate adaptation - Canada's first robotic snow clearing program - Planning for huge population growth and protecting Innisfil's Work-Lake balance and abundant rural landscapes Lynn was elected Mayor for the Town of Innisfil in 2018 and has represented the Town since 1994. First as Councillor for twenty years, and as Deputy Mayor from 2014 to 2018. In addition to her duties at the Town, Lynn was recently elected by her peers at Simcoe County to serve as Deputy Warden. Lynn held the position of President for the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) from 2016 to 2018 and has held a seat on their Board of Directors since 2011. In her role as President, she also sat on the Federation of Canadian Municipalities board along with the Provincial and Territorial Association. In 2020, Lynn was honoured with the Women of Influence in Local Government Award for her contributions to municipal government by Municipal World magazine.

Join me and Josie McLean, PhD , author and co-founder of the international Climate Coaching Alliance as we chat about: 1. Growing up along the Australian coast where seafood was plentiful and dad knew exactly where to find each catch 2. The AHA moment about healing the planet 3. Working with local Councils leading the climate and ecology shift to better quality of living 4. Her role as Organizational Ecologist and Big Little Shifts 5. Asking the gentle questions to help us reflect on our planet Dr. Josie McLean, PhD, PCC was one of the early pioneers of professional coaching in Australia after an early career as a corporate strategic planner. Josie was President of ICF Australasia in 2003 and accepted the ICF President’s Award in 2009. Josie’s doctoral research into organizational sustainability, emergent change and complexity was completed in 2017. She has co-founded two not-for-profit organizations in addition to the Climate Coaching Alliance. Dr. McLean’s most recent book is Big Little Shifts: A practitioner’s guide to complexity for organizational change and adaptation (2020). Josie is a constant learner, activist, and provocateur at heart. Josie is also the principle consultant at the Partnership and remains very committed to helping organisations (of all types) transform their identities – their purpose, vision and values - to be aligned with a truly sustainable (regenerative) world. Without this transformation, she does not believe that we will address issues such as climate change successfully.

Let's talk about "The Mayor" author George Cuff's newest book. Join me and George as we chat about his new book: - His process for writing "The Mayor" - The one question he asked over 20 Canadian Mayors - Attributes the ideal Mayor should exhibit - A Mayor's challenges, impacts and informal power - 7 Character "frailties" in an ineffective Mayor - His advice to every Canadian about their local role George has published over 450 articles as well as 11 books on local government. He has three “how to” books (Cuff’s Guide Volumes One and Two as well as his “Executive Policy Governance” which was published in 2014. He also has three books of articles in an “Off the Cuff” series published by Municipal World and a book of fictional stories (Life in the Trenches) set in the world of local government. His book “Leading: The Real Role of a Mayor and Council” was released in 2019; a very different book (Tucker Goes to City Hall) was released in 2020; and The Mayor is his newest book. George Cuff has a Canada-wide reputation amongst municipalities, crown agencies and other public sector bodies as an advisor, consultant and author on the art and principles of governance and the elements of effective organizations. His background includes a Bachelor of Arts (Recreation Administration) degree from the University of Alberta and work experience in banking, oil and gas, recreation administration, environmental protection, local government and the private sector. He has been involved in various aspects of local government since his days as a youth advisor and playground leader in 1970 for the City of Edmonton. He has since applied his academic and experiential observations to his role as advisor to numerous small and large public sector organizations across Canada.

Join me and Canada's newest Senator and former mayor of Banff, Alberta - Karen Sorensen as we chat about: - how organic a political journey can be - being mayor in Canada's first National Park - preparing for life as a Canadian Senator - entrepreneurial lessons and politics After being selected to the Canadian Senate, Senator Sorensen has recently resigned from her third term as Mayor of Banff. Senator Karen previously served as a municipal councillor for six years and as a school board trustee for four years. After a successful 17-year career in the hotel industry in Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta, she founded Catalyst Enterprises Consulting in 2000, providing customer service and sales training in the hospitality industry, and sharing her expertise as a keynote speaker. At the municipal level, Senator Sorensen served as Chair of the Town of Banff’s Governance and Finance Committee and on the Banff Lake Louise Tourism Board. In 2005, the Senator was named Alberta Centennial Ambassador. She is the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and YWCA Banff 2019 Woman of Distinction Award.

Let's talk about the Leadership Crisis and the most important and challenging skill for elected officials...their VISION! Join me and author Gord Hume on Episode 34 of the Thriving Mayor Show as we chat about: 1. The 7 C’s of leadership 2. 3 enormous emerging issues that will influence government leadership in the future 3. Lack of municipal recognition by federal constitution and government. 4. Problem of lack of taxation for cities. 5. Need to reform governance model for cities. 6. Any surprises with last night’s federal election? Gord is one of Canada’s most respected commentators on local government issues and a sought after key-note speaker for conferences and municipalities around the world. An entrepreneur, four-term City councillor in London Ontario, and successful business leader, Gord brings his own unique leadership perspective to 21st century city building.

Join me and Hannah Romses, Angela Liu and Brooke Sutherland of the British Columbia Council for International Cooperation (BCCIC) for Episode 33. We talk about their new "Climate Justice for Municipalities Toolkit" and - volunteering with the youth led climate action branch @ BCCIC - talking with marginalized communities, uplifting their stories and inclusiveness - getting citizens and politicians excited about policy - the "tipping point" that triggered BCCIC to launch the toolkit - getting youth involved in grass roots action, going beyond collecting opinions - why mayors and local councillors are ideally suited to employ the toolkit - favourite books about healing the planet Watch the episode at: https://lnkd.in/ednumFQc The British Columbia Council for International Cooperation (BCCIC) is a network of civil society organizations and individuals moving toward a better world based in British Columbia, Canada. Its youth-led climate change branch focuses on providing sound and evidence-based policy recommendations to all levels of governments while representing the interests of Canadian youth at climate negotiations worldwide. Today’s guests are responsible for the BCCIC publication: CLIMATE JUSTICE TOOLKIT FOR MUNICIPALITIES. Municipalities must recognize the intersectional impact of climate change and the crucial importance of climate justice to ensure that policy at the local level of governance is equitable. As the closest jurisdiction to the ground, municipalities have great potential to ensure that climate action centres the voices and leadership of marginalized populations across British Columbia (BC) moving forward.

Join me and Mayor Jeff Lehman of Barrie, Ontario on Episode 32 of the Thriving Mayor show as we chat about: - Jeff's innovations around Shift Government - Empowering people to make a difference in the big challenges facing us - A Mayor's biggest challenge right now - The damage social media causes and the polarization of people - Travelling to regain some normalcy My favourite tag is on Jeff’s Instagram … "Jedi _Mayor Mayor of Barrie and unrepentant fan of evidence. Unity and prosperity begins with empathy and courage. One day I'll run a diner in the mountains" Jeff Lehman is the 46th Mayor of the City of Barrie, having been re-elected to a third term in 2018 with 91% of the popular vote. Mayor Lehman is the current Chair of Ontario’s Big City Mayors’ Caucus, representing Ontario’s 29 largest cities. Mayor Lehman is also a founding director of Alectra, the second largest community-owned utility in North America, serving more than a million customers in southern Ontario. He holds a B.A. from Queen’s University, and a Master’s Degree with first class honours from the UK’s London School of Economics. As an economist, he writes and speaks frequently on issues affecting Canada’s cities. In 2019, the prestigious US business magazine Fast Company named Lehman one of its top 100 Most Creative People in Business for his innovative solutions in government. Mayor Lehman is a passionate believer in transforming urban economies through public and private entrepreneurship

Join me and Mayor Natasha Kulikowski of Inuvik, NWT as we chat about: - Life in the far north - Her International Women's Day T shirt which read "Destroy the Patriarchy and not the Planet". - The wonderful matriarchal sense in Inuvik - Natasha's keys to entrepreneurial success in the north - Making the most of every opportunity - Stepping down as mayor but staying involved through Council Natasha graduated high school in 2000, and has lived in Inuvik since 2001. Natasha first ran for a Town Council seat in the fall of 2012, but lost by 2 votes! Later in that term of Council a member passed away and Council's decision at the time was to fill the position by appointment, since she was the person with the next most votes Natasha was appointed to Council in April of 2015. She was finally elected in the regularly scheduled election in Oct 2015. She enjoyed working on Council and decided early in her term to run for the Mayor's seat in 2018, was elected as Mayor. Visit: https://www.facebook.com/MayorKulikowski https://www.inuvik.ca/en/index.asp https://www.arcticdevelopmentexpo.com/

Join me and Steve Pellegrini, the Mayor of King Township, Ontario on Episode 30 of the Thriving Mayor. Steve shares his insights about: - Creating the locally-led Covid Vaccination Clinic - King Townships incredible volunteer community - Leading Canada's wealthiest municipality - The Challenges facing York's regions largest municipality geographically but smallest population and - The powerful benefits of municipal parks and culture In addition to being mayor Steve is also King’s Regional representative on York Region Council. He was sworn into office in 2010 and is now serving his third consecutive term, the past two by acclimation! While continuing his service in King, Steve worked for over 35 years in the municipal sector, retiring as a Manager of the Project Management Office (PMO). He strongly believes in giving back and has been involved in many boards in his community... including the areas of Heritage, Transportation; communications, Housing, Health, Conservation Authority (TRCA), agriculture and drainage, infrastructure, policing, parks and recreation, the arts and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM).

Join me and Anat Banin, an Architect and Urban Designer from Tel Aviv, Israel. Anat Banin is curious about where we feel ‘at home’, and why we feel better in some places more than others. She wants to build great neighbourhoods that people wholly connect with. Places where they feel especially at home. Trained in Rhode Island and New York, now working in Israel, her work spans interior design to city planning. Anat ‘s work in architecture and urban design over the last 20+ years ranges from small interior renovations and private homes, to working with teams on entire neighbourhoods and cities. She feels most at home at the ends of the scale, the micro and the macro, in our most private spaces and the spaces beyond buildings. She believes that they are fundamentally connected in redefining and reframing our understanding of home. She maintains that home has to extend beyond the four walls of our house into our neighbourhoods. In the past few years she has focused on training for city planning committees on policy reform. In her free time she practices tsundoku (the art of buying books and never reading them) and is attempting to perfect her coffee making skills. #urbandesign #architecture #realestate #housing #stewardship